Important - composting worms are not the same as common garden worms that you dig up in the soil in your garden.
The Compost Worm
There are 4 species of compost worm. They live in the first 12 cm of topsoil on a rich diet of rotting vegetable matter, but don't eat soil. They can be found in manure heaps and leaf piles, but you won't find them in normal garden soil.To a compost worm protozoa, bacteria and fungi are like salt and vinegar on fish and chips – delicious.
They do not build permanent burrows in their habitats, but prefer to burrow randomly through the topsoil and rotting matter. When it's cold or really hot they will burrow deeper down and ball up, covering themselves with slime to protect themselves from drying out and hibernate to conserve energy.
There are four main species of compost worms available:-
Eisenia fetida
common names- Tiger worm, manure worm, brandling worm
colour- rust brown with yellow stripes around it's body- just like a Tiger!
length- up to 130mm
ideal working temperature range - 15-25°
Dendrobaena venta
common names- dendras, blue noses
colour- violet, purple or olive brown and sometime striped
length- up to 155mm
ideal working temperature range 18-25°
Lumbricus rubellus
common names- redworm, bloodworm, red wiggler
colour- dark red to maroon, no strips and light yellow underneath
length- up to 105 mm
ideal working temperature range- 18-23°
Eisenia andrei
common names- reg tiger worm
colour- dark red to purple with maybe some stripes
length- up to 130mm
ideal working temperature range- 18-23°
Tom, 27 February 2021
FOUND a worm in Madison, Alabama. After 2 days of sustained rain. 10-11" long, light brown, black or very dark brown head. LESS than 1/32" in diameter! (My 1" paperclip wire is 1/32 and this worm is only about 2/3 that! It leads with its black "head" just like a snake. What the heck is this thing? I do have pics and a video.